Tradewinds LLC. Buys New Holdings in Fiserv, Inc. (NYSE:FI)

Tradewinds LLC. purchased a new position in shares of Fiserv, Inc. (NYSE:FI) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 1,113 shares of the business services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $229,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of FI. Valley National Advisers Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Fiserv during the fourth quarter worth $29,000. Marshall Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Fiserv during the 4th quarter valued at about $29,000. Compass Financial Services Inc purchased a new position in shares of Fiserv during the 4th quarter valued at about $31,000. Campbell Capital Management Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Fiserv in the 4th quarter valued at about $37,000. Finally, Knuff & Co LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Fiserv in the fourth quarter worth about $45,000. 90.98% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Fiserv Price Performance

NYSE:FI opened at $221.98 on Wednesday. Fiserv, Inc. has a one year low of $145.98 and a one year high of $238.59. The stock has a market cap of $124.59 billion, a PE ratio of 41.18, a P/E/G ratio of 1.52 and a beta of 0.93. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.86, a quick ratio of 1.07 and a current ratio of 1.06. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $222.51 and a 200 day moving average price of $208.84.

Fiserv (NYSE:FI) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The business services provider reported $2.51 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.48 by $0.03. Fiserv had a return on equity of 17.93% and a net margin of 15.31%. Equities research analysts expect that Fiserv, Inc. will post 10.23 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Fiserv declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock repurchase program on Thursday, February 20th that allows the company to repurchase 60,000,000 shares. This repurchase authorization allows the business services provider to repurchase shares of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are typically a sign that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

FI has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on Fiserv from $258.00 to $267.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, February 6th. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their target price on shares of Fiserv from $208.00 to $231.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 3rd. StockNews.com began coverage on shares of Fiserv in a research report on Sunday, March 23rd. They set a “buy” rating on the stock. Citigroup upped their price objective on shares of Fiserv from $230.00 to $233.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. Finally, Seaport Res Ptn raised shares of Fiserv from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 14th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-one have given a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $242.32.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, COO Guy Chiarello sold 45,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $235.55, for a total value of $10,599,750.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer now owns 227,711 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $53,637,326.05. This represents a 16.50 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.75% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Fiserv Company Profile

Fiserv, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, provides payments and financial services technology services in the United States, Europe, the Middle East and Africa, Latin America, the Asia-Pacific, and internationally. It operates through Merchant Acceptance, Financial Technology, and Payments and Network segments.